$ion. The conclu$ion in the book con$i$t$ of approximately 250 word$ or three $hoCt paragraph$ which i$ hardly $ufficient. In fact, it really $aY$ nothing. It doe$ not give a critical evaluation of the origin and growth of the vatioU$ communitie$ of the valley. Nor doe$ it mention the influence the valley had on the hi$tory of $outhern Africa.
Thi$ book, which i$ available in both official language$, i$ however a remarkable and valuable $ource of information about the development of the valley over the Pa$t three hundred year$. It will therefore be u$eful not only to the hi$torian, but al$O to the people of the Draken$tein Valley.
j.C. AUCAMP
University of Fort Hare
the mandate given to the authot. Within these limits Piet Snyman has
done a wotkmanlike job on the history of Danielskuil. He has consulted
a wide tange of sources,
given due attention to the ptecolonial inhabitants
of the tegion and also to the Griqua. The division of his material into three
sections is largely successful,
and represents
an attempt to compromise
between a wholly chronological account, and a study of some key themes.
Thus in his first section he details the chronological course of events
from
the Stone Age to 1915,
by which time Danielskuil had assumed
a character
and form that was not to change very much until recently. In the second
section
he looks thematically
at the economic
underpinnings
of Danielskuil,
the role of local government, and relations between the various segments
of the population of the town. The short third section will be of interest
mainly to the people of Danielskuil itself, containing a miscellany
of odd
bits of information about the town which could not easily find a place in
the first two sections.
It is a competent piece of work in which the author strives to do justice
to all. He is at pains to bring the blacks into his narrative
at every
opportu-nity, and he does not shy away from describing 1948 and the accession
to
power of the Nationalist government as a watershed in the deterioration
of relations between
the whites and blacks. He has demonstrated
an
aware-ness of recent trends in historical writing and the sort of questions being
asked of the past today. This local history series
has produced some solid
works. The current book on Danielskuil must rank as one of the best in
the series.
.
KEN SMIlli
University of South Africa
P.H.R. SNYMAN. Danielskui/: vanGriekwa-buitepos tot dienssentrum. Raad vir Geestes-wetenskaplike Navorsing: Pretoria, 1988. 186 pp. Illus. R18,OO (exclusive).
ISBN 0 7969 0641 6.
fur the uninitiated, the Nonhern Cape town of Danielskuil lies about 150 kilometres nonh-west of Kimberley in the Postmasburg magis-terial district. The town derives its name from a nearby natural cavern which, because of its supposed (and mythical) use as a prison during the time that the area came under the aegis of the Griqua, reminded people of Daniel and the lion's den.
The author, a full.time research historian at the Human Sciences Research Council's Institute for Historical Research, is no stranger to the history of the Nonhern Cape. He has written two books on the region in this Institute's local history series, the first on Postmasburg, (Postmasburg: 'n geskiedkun-diKe oorslg tot 1982. Human Sciences Research Council: Pretoria, 1983) and the second on Olifantshoek (Olifantshoek -oase van die Langeberg. Human Sciences Research Council: Pretoria, 1986). There is no one better qualified than Piet Snyman to write the history of Danielskuil.
But one must still ask the question: 'Why Danielskuil?' There is no doubting that, as the author says, by focusing attention on a small area, matters that escape the attention of the historian who works on a larger canvas may well be illuminated. And indeed, Snyman does touch briefly upon a number of issues that are seen more clearly from the perspective of Danielskuil than they would be from the amphitheatre of the Union Buildings in Pretoria. But this still does not explain why Danielskuil was chosen. There is no explanation in the book itself, nor does a careful reading of the text make it clear why Danielskuil has been favoured with a history. It is a pity that the reader was given no inkling of what the author was trying to achieve or the terms of reference of the mandate that was given him when embarking on his history.
The area had some interesting Stone Age inhabitants before it fell within the orbit of the Griqua, where it was for a time the headquaners of their leader Barend Barends. White settlement of the region followed, and in 1892 Danielskuil became a 'white' town in the sense that it was controlled by the white townsmen. The number of whites increased painfully slowly and they only numbered 560 in 1970, increasing to 942 in 1985. Electriciry only came to the town in 1938, and even that was brought about through the good offices of the Dutch Reformed Church. It was not before 1975 that the local authorities had enough money to begin tarring the srreets. Although it had a raillirtk from 1930, this was 23 kilomerres away.
In other words there is very little that seems to distinguish the town. From the turn of the century it was primarily a service cenrre for the sur-rounding farms, and this only changed in the last few decades as a result of the increased exploitation of asbestos in the area, and, when the asbestos market declined, the establishment of a limeworks.
Snyman touches on a number of issues that one would have liked to see explored futther. The author himself could hardly be expected to do so in a book that follows the fottunes of the region from the earliest Stone Age inhabitants to the most recent developments. The book contains much detail that might easily have been omitted so that space could be found for examining some of the deeper issues. Resistance by blacks to the exactions of the dominant white townsmen is mentioned, petitions are referred to, but nowhere are the roots of what seems on the surface to be a sophisticated response by the blacks analysed. He does not examine in any depth the implications for the society (and labour relations) of the coming of industry. But if the author has not himself had the time to analyse these matters, or to examine the role played by people like Ahmed Sulliman in the life of the town, at least he has given indications of what lies in store for future researchers into this field. Here too, the inrriguing details of mixed living patterns within the town boundaries deserve futther analysis.
The limitations of this work. one suspects, derive from the nature of
HJ. VAN ASWEGEN. Geskiedenis van Suid-Afrika tot 1854. Academica: Pretoria en Kaap-stad, 1989. 318 pp. Geili. R35,OO (eksklusief).
ISBN 0 86874 337 2.
Hierdie is een van die min handboeke in Aftikaans vir die student van Suid-Afrikaanse geskiedenis, en een van flOg minder war aandag gee aan die Ease voor die koms van die blanke en ook nie 'n blanke-sentriese uitgangspunt bet nie. Van Aswegen, war hoof is van die Departe-ment Geskiedenis aan die Randse Afrikaanse Universiteit, bet horn dit ten doel gestel om kennis te neem van nuwe navorsing oor en vertolkings van die Suid-Afrikaanse geskiedenis sonder om die rol van die blanke in 'n oormatig negatiewe lig te stel. Dit is vir die eerstejaarstudent bedoel en is, volgens die skrywer, nie op oorspronklike navorsing gebaseer nie maar eerder 'n poging om 'in die lig van die ou en nuwe kennis oor ons vroee geskiedenis die gebeure en prosesse op 'n onbevange wyse aan die leser en student oor te dca' (p. 8).
Die hoek bestaan uit elfhoofstukke waarvan die eerste vier (67 pp.) prehis-toriese Suid-Mrika en die Bantoesprekende gemeenskappe tot 1800 behan-del. 'n Volgende hoofstuk dek die vestiging van 'n blanke gemeenskap tydens die Nederlandse VOC-.tydperk (1652-1795), terwyl een blank-swart-tussen-groepverhoudinge in dieselfde tyd beskryf. Drie hoofstukke ondersoek die Kaapkolonie onder Britse en Bataafse beheer tot 1854 en sluit die interaksie tussen blankes, gekleurdes en swartes in. In die laaste rwee hoofstukke bespreek Van Aswegen die geskiedenis van die binneland voor die Groot Trek en daarna. Net voor die register is claar (in die vorm van 'n bylae) 'n kort bespreking van geskiedskrywing oor Suid-Afrika. Daar is ook nege lyn-kaarte opgeneem Qm die teks toe te lig, maar bulle verskyn ongelukkig nie in die inhoudsopgawe nie.
'n Belangrike kenmerk van die hoek is die eenvormigheid (eenheid) war gedagtegang en onrwikkeling betref -jets war meestal by spanpogings ontbreek. Die taal en styl is keurig en die tegniese versorging, dubbelkolom-bladuitleg en drukwerk getuig van die hoe standaard waarvoor die uitgewety bekend is. Die Plantin-lettertipe, hoewel aan die klein kant, lees maklik, die omslagonrwerp is esteties veranrwoord en die bindwerk in slapband is stewig dog funksioneel. By elke hoofstuk is 'n afsonderlike bronnelys gevoeg war naleeswerk behoort te stimuleer.
'n Besondere hulpmiddel vir die student of algemene leser is die insetsels of panele war 'n groot aantal onderwerpe toelig. So is claar statistiek oor skeepsverkeer, die herkoms van immigrante en slawe; pensketse van politici, prokureurs, Boereleiers en sendelinge; besprekings van die aard en herkoms van mites oor Slagtersnek en die dtfaqane; 'n vergelyking 'lan die uiteen-lopende vertolkings van die Slag by Bloedrivier en Geloftedag, en 'n volblad-uiteensetting van die begrip 'grens' of 'grensgebied' aan die hand van hedendaagse liberale en radikale vertolkers.
Van Aswegen bet bepaald gepoog om 'n 'moderne' Afrikaanse standpunt weer te gee. Geskiedenis van Suid-Afrika tot 1854 verskil clan ook van die meer 'tradisionele' vertolkings van Mrikaanse historici waaraan die
